5 sexual health services insurance will cover… for men

The political flap over the Obama Administration decision to require health insurance companies to cover birth control as preventative care continues apace, even after former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) declared it “a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be,” and his top donor Foster Friess suggested women just “put [an aspirin] between their knees and it wasn’t that costly.”

The fact of the matter is that health insurance covers all manner of “things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be,” when it comes to men, and no one has any real complaints about insurance coverage that allows men to continue having sex for non-procreative reasons and despite medical conditions that would otherwise prevent it. Most of them are actually far more expensive than hormonal birth control or intrauterine devices, the two methods of contraception that House and Senate Republicans now want all employers to be able to prevent their insurance companies from covering in employee health insurance packages. Five things that health insurers — including, in some cases, the federal government — currently cover for men’s reproductive tracts.

1. Erectile dysfunction drugs
From Viagra to Cialis, if a man has trouble getting or maintaining an erection (a common occurrence with age or with certain diseases), a pharmaceutical company has a $15 pill for that. And, in many cases, the man’s insurance company picks up the tab.

About the Author

Megan Carpentier is the executive editor of Raw Story. She previously served as an associate editor at Talking Points Memo; the editor of news and politics at Air America; an editor at Jezebel.com; and an associate editor at Wonkette. Her published works include pieces for the Washington Post, the Washington Independent, Ms Magazine, RH Reality Check, the Women's Media Center, On the Issues, the New York Press, Bitch and Women's eNews.